Venetian blind having rotatable head assembly

ABSTRACT

A VENETIAN BLIND INCLUDES A TUBULAR HEAD ASSEMBLY WHICH IS ROTATABLY MOUNTED AT ONE OF ITS ENDS IN A CORD LOCK ASSEMBLY HAVING THEREIN A VERTICALLY MOVABLE LOCKING PIN WHICH AUTOMATICALLY GRIPS AND LOCKS THE CORD WHEN THE LATTER IS RELEASED AFTER THE BLIND HAS BEEN LIFTED. LIFT CORDS PASS THROUGH THE CORD LOCK ASSEMBLY AND INTO THE TUBULAR HEAD ASSEMBLY AND THROUGH SPACED SLOTS IN THE WALL OF THE TUBULAR HEAD ASSEMBLY. TILT CORDS ARE ATTACHED TO THE HEAD ASSEMBLY. ONE END OF THE TUBULAR   HEAD ASSEMBLY IS MOUNTED IN A FIRST MOUNTING BRACKET WHICH SUPPORTS THE CORD LOCK ASSEMBLY AND HOLDS IT AGAINST ROTATION. A SECOND MOUNTING BRACKET WHICH SUPPORTS THE OTHER END OF THE HEAD ASSEMBLY HAS MOUNTED THEREIN A TILT GEAR ASSEMBLY, SAID OTHER END OF THE TUBULAR HEAD ASSEMBLY IS SEPARABLY CONNECTED TO THE TILE GEAR ASSEMBLY IN TUBULAR HEAD ASSEMBLY ROTATING RELATION.

p 20, T971 F. VECCHIARELLI VENETIAN BLIND HAVING ROTATABLE HEAD ASSEMBLY5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. FK/M/Uf VfCffl/AREZZ/ Filed March 6, 1969ATTORNEY VENETIAN BLIND HAVING ROTATABLE HEAD ASSEMBLY Filed March 6,1969 p 1571 F. VECCHIARELLI 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. F64/UC/SVECC/l/AEHL/ A m/wey P 0, 1971 F. VECCHIARELLI VENETIAN BLIND HAVINGROTATABLE HEAD ASSEMBLY 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 6. 1969 INVENTOR.fiA/VC/S VEC'CHMPELL/ A TOIQA/EV United States Patent Oifice PatentedSept. 20, 1971 3,605,852 VENETIAN BLIND HAVING ROTATABLE HEAD ASSEMBLYFrancis Vecchiarelli, River Edge, N.J., assignor to Alcan AluminumCorporation, Cleveland, Ohio Filed Mar. 6, 1969, Ser. No. 804,781 Int.Cl. E06b 9/26 US. Cl. 160-168 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Avenetian blind includes a tubular head assembly which is rotatablymounted at one of its ends in a cord lock assembly having therein avertically movable locking pin which automatically grips and locks thecord when the latter is released after the blind has been lifted. Liftcords pass through the cord lock assembly and into the tubular headassembly and through spaced slots in the wall of the tubular headassembly. Tilt cords are attached to the head assembly. One end of thetubular head assembly is mounted in a first mounting bracket whichsupports the cord lock assembly and holds it against rotation. A secondmounting bracket which supports the other end of the head assembly hasmounted therein a tilt gear assembly; said other end of the tubular headassembly is separably connected to the tilt gear assembly in tubularhead assembly rotating relation.

This invention relates to venetian blind structures and particularly toa novel venetian blind structure having a rotatable tubular headassembly through which the lift cords pass and to which tilt cords areconnected, and to the adjuncts thereto.

It is a purpose of the invention to provide a structure which can beembodied to particular advantage, but not so limited, in a blind whichemploys slender cords in lieu of the usual tape in its tape ladderstructure and lift cord structure, and in which the blind slats may beof substantially less width than those of the conventional venetianblind.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The conventional venetian blind structureincludes a head rail of rectangular cross section which provides astationary enclosure consisting of side walls and bottom in which arotatable tilt rod and other components of the blind are mounted. Astructure such as described is shown in Vecchiarelli US. Pat. No.3,156,295. The head rail is removably mounted on wall or windowbrackets. Since all of the blind control and operating mechanism ismounted in the head rail and since the weight of the head rail itself,for a window of average size, may be substantial, installation andremoval of conventional venetian blinds for the purpose of cleaning andrepairing, for example, may be difiicult. It is, therefore, theprincipal purpose of this invention to provide a separably demountablevenetian blind structure which is relatively simple and light in weight.Moreover, it is a purpose of the invention to completely eliminate theconventional stationary head rail and to mount the tilt gear assembly ina separate blind mounting bracket thereby reducing to a minimum thenumber of parts mounted in or on the head assembly itself, achieving anoptimum simplicity of structure, providing the means to separably removeand replace the components of the operational mechanism, and reducingits weight to the lowest possible point.

The invention can be more fully understood and its purposes, advantages,and objectives more fully appreciated by reading the following detailedspecification in light of the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view, with parts broken away to show underlyingstructure, of a preferred form of the venetian blind, its mountingbrackets and control cords;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view, partly in section, taken on line 22 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view similar to that of FIG. 2, showing,however, the tubular head assembly in rotational position necessary forinserting the end of the head rail assembly into its mounting bracket;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view showing a section of the tubular headassembly, a cord lock bushing, and a cord lock assembly;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a metallic liner for the cord lockassembly;

FIG. 6 is an elevational view in section of the venetian blind withportions of the slats and bottom rail broken away;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view through the bottom rail and firstslat, taken on line 7--7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a transverse sectional view through the cord lock assembly,taken on line 88 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a transverse sectional view through the tubular head assemblyand the first two blind slats, taken on line 99 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of a tape retainer, a fragmentof the tubular head assembly, and a lift cord guide;

FIG. 11 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 1111 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view including a tilter housing, atilter bracket, a tilter timer and associated parts;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a tilter mechanism employing anoperating wand in lieu of tilt cords;

FIG. 13A is an exploded view of the portion of FIG. 13 by which anoperating wand is connected to a tilt worm;

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary view of a venetian blind showing the tiltermechanism, its operating cords and the blind in open position;

FIG. 14A is a vertical sectional view through tilt cord guides and atilt cord drum shown in perspective in FIG. 12;

FIG. 15 is a view similar to that of FIG. 14, however, showing theposition of the tilter cords when the slats of the blind are closed;

FIG. 16 is a fragmentary view of the assembly showing its mountingpintle and the operating cords therefor;

FIG. 17 is an enlarged view partly in section of the lift cordarrangement; and

FIG. 18 is an enlarged view, partly in section, showing the tilt cords.

In FIG. 1, a venetian blind, in which the invention herein is embodied,is illustrated as including a tubular head 10. This tubular head ispreferably formed of a length of ordinary metallic tubing which isslotted in a circumferential direction at predetermined points along itslength to accommodate the lift cords. The head tube 10 is preferablyformed of aluminum. The head assembly is adapted to be mounted in a pairof wall brackets 12 and 14. The bracket 12, for purpose of distinction,may be referred to as the cord lock bracket and bracket 14, for similarreason, may be referred to as the tilter bracket. Each of the brackets12 and 14 has a pair of horizontal slots 13 and 15 as shown in thebrackets 12 and 14, respectively (FIGS. 1 and 3) for receiving aninturned edge 17 of a valence of facia member 17a (FIGS. 1 and 2) whichis shown in part in FIG. 1 and in section in FIG. 2.

The specific construction of the tubular head assembly and itsassociated mechanism is more fully shown in the longitudinal sectionalview of FIG. 6. One end of the head tube is fitted with a cord lockassembly sleeve 16 which is adapted to rotate freely on the neck 18 of acord lock assembly 20. The sleeve is preferably held in the head tube bycircumferential swaging 19. The elements of the cord lock assembly, asmore clearly shown in FIG. 4, include the tubular neck 18 which isadapted to seat in the cord lock assembly sleeve 16, and it terminatesin a housing 22 in which the cord locking mechanism is mounted. Ametallic washer 23 is interposed between the inner face of the housing22 and the sleeve 16.

The neck 18 of the cord lock assembly has a pair of slots 24 and 26extending through the free end thereof in an axial direction whichimpart some flexibility to the neck and permit its entry into the cordlock assembly sleeve and its retention therein after assembled. The neck18 has a circumferential flare 28 at its free end adapted to engage theend 30 of the cord lock assembly sleeve 16 (FIG. 6).

Extending outwardly from the housing 22 (FIG. 4) is a mounting pintle 32adapted to engage the cord lock bracket 12. The mounting pintle 32 isrectangular in cross section and is elongated with special recessedslots 33 and 35 to adapt it to variations in the spacing of the wallbrackets 12 and 14. Within the housing 22 (FIGS. 4, 6 and 8) is a fixedcord lock tube 34 and a cord lock pin 36. The cord lock tube 34 guidesthe lift cords 38 and 38a into the interior of the head tube 10. Thesecords pass between the cord lock tube 34 and the cord lock pin 36. Thecord lock pin 36 is guided for movement toward and away from the cordlock tube 34 in a pair of slots 40 and 42 formed in the housing 22. Asmore fully shown in FIG. 8, the cord lock pin 36 is retained in therespective slots by heads 44 and 46, and the pin itself is preferablyformed with axial ribs 48- to more positively grip the lift cords (seeFIG. 8). The pin 36 is longer than the width of its housing in order toavoid binding thereof against the Walls of the slats in case movement ofthe pin within the slots is not completely even.

As clearly shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the housing 22 of the cord lockassembly has a pair of internal grooves 21 and 21a facing each otherfrom opposite walls of the housing. The cord lock tube 34 has its endsmounted in the housing side walls of these grooves and consequently theopposite ends of the cord lock tube 34 extends into the respectivegrooves 21 and 21a. This relationship is of substantial advantage in ablind wherein the lift cords are relatively slender strands because asthe cords move about the lock tube, the cords will be held againstentrance and pinching between the ends of the cord lock tube and theadjacent wall of the housing. Thus, the cord lock provides recesses toaccept the ends of the roller and to additionally guide the cords awayfrom its ends to help prevent binding and pinching of the cords.

A further feature which contributes to reliability of operation is foundin the fact that the slots in which the cord lock pin 36 operates areclosely adjacent the end wall 23 of the cord lock assembly housing.Thereby, the cord lock pin 36 is capable of acting as a cord lockingwedge as it moves upwardly in its slots, receiving support from the endwall 22a of the housing and throughout its entire length therebyenabling the pin to be made of relatively light weight, yieldablematerial, such as aluminum, for example.

It can be seen from the foregoing that as the lift cords 38 and 38a arepulled downwardly, the cord lock pin 36 will drop in the slots of thehousing thereby freeing the lift cords for manipulation. However, assoon as the lift cords are released, the upward movement thereof willcarry the cord lock pin 36 upwardly in the housing slots and tightlyengage the lift cords between it and the cord lock tube 34, therebysecurely locking the lift cords in position. This structure andoperation constitute an improvement over the pivoted pawl which iscustomarily employed as cord lock means in the conventional venetianblind, since the operation is instantaneous and automatic, and contraryto the conventional structure, does not require the operator to bringthe cord into engagement with the locking means as is so often necessarywhen the conventional cord locking pawl is employed. The naturalresiliency of the lift cords and their small but inherent stiffnesscause the cords to swing outwardly as the Weight of the venetian blindslat assembly falls by gravity and engage the cord lock pin which,because of its light weight and its ribbed surface, immediately respondsto this action and is lifted into cord-locking position, creating acrush-proof condition. Therefore, the operator, by merely releasing thecords, is assured of almost immediate locking of the blind in position.

A supporting web 50 (FIGS. 2 and 3) of the cord lock bracket 12 hasformed therein a dihedral slot aperture 52 having a horizontal entryslot 54 which is not substantially wider than the narrow cross-sectionaldimension of the stud 32. The stud is rotated into a position in whichit is properly aligned with the entry slot 54, as shown in FIG. 3, andwhen completely moved into the dihedral slot 52, it is again rotated sothat one edge thereof is seated in a base recess 56, and a face of thestud rests against a face surface 58 of the dihedral slot, as shown inFIG. 2. It can be seen that the head assembly is thus securely mountedin the bracket, and the cord lock assembly is positively held againstrotation and is secured against inadvertent dislodgement.

The shape of the key hole aperture 52 when the blind is locked inposition assures accidental upward movement of the pintle 32 andconsequent disengagement of the blind. The point 57 of the dihedral slotabout which the pintle 32 must pivot is engaged by the pintle 32, whencompletely inserted into the slot, at a point on the pintle which isless than half its width, so that as soon as the head assembly isreleased, the weight of the blind being eccentric to the point 57, willcause the blind to rotate into the position, as shown in FIG. 2, andautomatically lock it in place. The first manipulation of the lift cordswill firmly seat the blind in the bracket 12.

It. is contemplated that the cord lock assembly be a molded plasticmember. In case a relatively soft plastic is used for this purpose, itis desirable to protect its inner Wear surfaces by using a metal insert60 which is illustrated in detail in FIG. 5, and also to provide minimumfrictional surface against which the cords will rub to provide for lesseffort in operation of the blind and to reduce wear by abrasion of theoperating cords which may deteriorate by reason of continued lift cordpassage therethrough.

The tilter bracket 12, as more fully shown in FIGS. 6 and 12, providesan enclosure for a tilter housing 62 in which is mounted a tilter gear64 which is engaged with a worm 66 thereby providing a control which isirreversible under weight of the blind itself. The shaft of the wormextends beyond one edge of the housing 62 where it is formed with a drum68 to which a pair of tilter operating cords 70 and 72 are attached. Thetitler housing is freely received within the bracket 12 and can bereadily removed therefrom, and is so constituted as to prevent counterrotation of the tilter assembly and to assure firm control of the tilt.This capability is due to a separable tilter drive shaft 74 whose outerend 76 is adapted for insertion into a hub aperture 78 of the tiltergear. The inner end 80 of the tilter drive shaft is separably engagedwith a tilt limit ring 82. which has a pair of stop fingers 84 and 86adapted to engage a stop 88 extending inwardly from the web 90 of thetilter bracket. This serves to limit and control the rotation of thetubular head assembly in both directions during the blind slat tiltingoperation to suit the requirements of the purchaser.

Intermediate its ends, the tilter drive shaft 74 (FIG. 12) has formedtherein a flanged collar 92 which is adapted to rest on a bearingsurface 94 formed in the aperture 96 in the tilter bracket web 90. Theouter flange 98 of the collar 92 describes not substantially more than asemi-circle such that the tilter drive shaft may be freely insertedthrough the aperture 96, but when the same is seated therein and rotatedthrough a half turn, the flange 98 will hold it in place by engagementwith the bracket wall below the bearing surface 94. From what has beensaid thus far, it should be apparent that the tubular assembly ismounted on the brackets 12 and 14, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, and thetilt gear operating cords 70 and 72 are manipulated, the head assembly10 will rotate since the head assembly is freely mounted for rotation onthe cord lock assembly 20, while the latter remains stationary by reasonof being held by the cord lock bracket 14.

The bottom rail 100 of the blind is supported by two or more life cords38 and 38a, for example, which are threaded through the cord lockassembly 20 and emerge from the head rail at respective elongated spacedslots 106 and 108 in the wall of the head tube 10, then pass throughapertures 110 in the blind slats, finally being attached to the bottomrail 100 where they pass through nylon bushing 111 to protect them fromabrasion. The slots 106 and 108 are substantially elongated in acircumferential direction to permit full 90" rotation of the tubularhead assembly 10 in both directions without interfering with the liftcords. This slot arrangement also eliminates any inter-positioning ofstructural elemenst between the face tapes providing maximum closure ofthe slat at the very top as is not possible with usual metal head railassembly.

The slats 112 (FIG. 2) are supported by a ladder 114 consisting ofequally spaced rungs 116 extending between pairs of side cables 118 and120. In the illustrative embodiment, two such pairs are shown attachedto the head tube 10. The method of attaching the tilt cords to the headtube is best shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. A tape retainer 122 encirclessubstantially half the circumference of the head tube and is fixedthereto by a pair of tongues 124 and 126 at its extremities. The tonguescoincide with the extremities of the circumferential head tube slots 106and 108 and are bent inwardly into the slots and against the inner faceof the tubular head assembly to hold them in place. The side cables 118and 120 are trained about the side cable retainers 122 and are fastenedby means of tabs 128 and 139 which are bent inwardly against the cordsat the opposite ends of the retainer. The side cables descend from thehead assembly and are fastened to the bottom rail 100 at opposite edgesthereof, as more clearly shown in FIG. 7. By this means the side cablesare accurately, firmly and quickly secured in place providing for moreuniform and precise tilting of all slats in unison.

Within the head tube 10 (FIG. 6) are cord guides 132 and 134 by whichthe lift cords 38 and 38a are guided in their passage through therespective slots 106 and 108. The specific form of the lift cord guidesis shown in FIG. 10 which, it may be assumed, illustrates the lift cordguide 134. The guide may conveniently be a molded plastic element havinga cord passage 136 which may be provided with a wear resisting insert138. The base of the guide has a groove 140 formed therein on a radiuscorresponding to that of the head tube. The groove 140 tightly embracesone edge of the circumferential slot in the head tube (as shown in FIG.6). This provides a simple method for inserting and mounting the guides.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the cord guides, as in the case of the guide134 shown in FIG. 10, are formed with slender ears 141 and 143 which aresomewhat resilient. This adapts the guides very nicely to head tubeswhich may vary slightly in diameter. Moreover, if the cars 141 and 143are slightly compressed, as they are inserted through the tube slots,they will spring back into engagement with the inner wall of the tume,as shown in FIG. 9, and thereby hold the guides more firmly in position.The cord guides provides for self centering of self centering of thelift cords within the tube thereby eliminating the eccentric forceswhich will unbalance the tilt action due to the weight of the blind atvarious angles of the tilt.

The blind is raised and lowered by manipulating the lift cords 3'8 and38a. Any desired position of the blind is maintained by engaging thecord lock pin 36 with the lift cord, as explained above. The bottom rail1% and the slats 112 are tilted by differentially manipulating the tiltcords 70 and 72 of the respective pairs.

The invention, although not limited to such use, is particularlyusefully embodied in a blind in which the ladders and side cables areformed of slender strands, such as braided polyester, and the slats ofthe blind, while not so limited, are preferably not substantially morethan half the width of the slats currently employed in conventionalblind structures. The tubular head assembly lends itself particularlywell to such construction since its diameter can easily be matched towidth of the slats that are to be employed.

The form and construction of the bottom rail is best seen in thecross-sectional view of FIG. 7, wherein is illustrated the tubular railmember having latch shoulders 144 and 146 formed in opposite facesthereof. A separate snap-on cable clip 148 having edge flanges 150 and152 is associated with each pair of side cables. When the snap-on clipis assembled with the tubular rail member 142, as shown in FIG. 7, theedge flanges 150 and 152 will spread as they pass the latch shoulders144 and 146 and then spring back against the side walls of the tubularrail member to hold the two elements together. As seen in FIG. 7, theside cables 118 and are trained about the tubular rail member 142 andthe snap-on clip 148 is then applied to the tubular rail member therebyclamping the side cables between the two elements of the bottom rail. Ifthe bottom rail is inverted and the side cables are brought about theouter surface of the snap-on clip 148 and thereunder, the same bottomrail will be adapted to use in blinds ha'ving slightly wider slats.

As shown in FIG. 6, the cable clips 148 which secure the side cables tothe bottom rail do not extend the full length of the bottom rail but arenot substantially longer than required to secure the ladders to thebottom rail. This arrangement facilitates the adjustment of therelationship between the bottom rail and the tilt cord ladders uponwhich the individual slats rest. In a venetian blind construction,wherein the side cables comprise a slender strand, such as braidednylon, or polyester, there is some tendency for the cables to stretch,particularly near the bottom of the blind where the bottom railexercises its greatest influence. When these cables are subject to astretching force, the several bottom slats of the blind may be separatedfrom each other further than de sirable, and the blind at its bottom maynot close completely. This condition can be corrected by imparting aninitial permanent tilt to the bottom rail which serves to project thelast few slats upwardly at an angle so that they will have an adequateoverlap when they are closed, and so that their apparent spacing is thesame as throughout the blind.

The cable clips 148 being individual to the several slat ladders caneasily be removed, one at a time, for the initial permanent adjustmentof the tilt of the bottom rail in respect to the other slats.

The construction of the bottom rail being of tubular lock seamconstruction permits the use of thinner gage sheet metals moreeffectively in providing a strong bottom rail which is necessary for thefunction of a large blind since the weight of the entire slat assemblyis carried by the bottom rail during the lifting process between thepoints where the lift cords attach to the bottom rail. The sagging orbending of the bottom rail being the most visible section of the blindin a lifted position causes the blind to be less neat and attractive tothe eye.

FIG. 13 illustrates a modified tilter mechanism 154 which is especiallyadapted for operation by a wand 156 which is in the form of a rigiddecorative rod coupled to the shaft 158 of the worm 160 by means of alink 162 fixed to the worm shaft by a large headed screw 169. The tiltermechanism 154 is in all respects similar to the tilter mechanism 62,previously described, having. as it does, a tilter gear 164 within ahousing 166 which is operated by the worm 160. The position of theladder has been shifted to the side of the tilter gear 164 to locate itas required for operation by the wand-type operating rod 156.

The specific construction of the connection between the Wand 156 and theshaft 158 is shown in FIG. 13A. The shaft 158 has a fiat surface 159having formed therein a screw hole 161 and having projecting from itsface a semi-circular boss 163. In assembling the wand 156 to the shaft158, the link 162 which has a gap 165 is passed through an aperture 167at the end of the wand 156. The upper end of the link 162 is then seatedon the boss v163 of the shaft 158 and the screw 169 which has a largehead is then driven home into the aperture :161 of the shaft 158. Thehead of the screw is sufliciently large to span the opposite legs of thelink 162 and thereby hold the link firmly in position. The aperture 167in the wand 156 embraces the link 162 quite tightly so that rotationalmovement between the wand and the link is avoided yet the wand is freeto swing about the link in a vertical plane.

In passing, it may be appropriate to notice some additional detailswhich contribute to the quality and utility of the structure. In FIG.12, one face of the inner end 80 of the tilter drive shaft has an indexmark 170 which is turned downwardly in order to effect an initialinsertion of the tilter mechanism into the bracket and the hub of thetilter gear. The tilter drive shaft is then given a onequarter turnwhich puts it into operative position.

Also, as shown in FIG. 12, the outer end 80 of the tilter drive shaft isadapted to cooperate with an aperture 172 of a bushing 174 which isfixed in one end of the head tube by swaging, as shown at 176 in FIG. 6.Assembly of the sleeve 174 and the head tube 10 with proper regard tothe lift cord slots 106 and 108 of the head tube is facilitated byforming the outer end of the sleeve 174 with a collar 178 which is cutback through substantially half of its circumference to form a pair ofshoulders 180 and 182. The end of the head tube 10 is similarly butinversely formed with shoulders 186 and 188. Thus when the bushing 174is inserted into the end of the head tube, it can be rotated until therespective shoulders 180182 and 186-188 are in engagement with eachother thus assuring that the rotational position of the bushing iscorrect and unchangcable.

The connection between the cord lock end of the tube 10 and the sleeve18 (FIG. 6) is somewhat similarly effected. As shown, the sleeve 18 ispositively secured to the tube by forming a circular indentation 18atherein, and upon assembly of the tube 10 and the sleeve 18, a circularindented groove is formed in the head tube in a correlative positionwith respect to the corresponding groove in the sleeve. This providesfor locking the sleeve against shifting in a longitudinal positionwithout compressing the elastic plastic material of the sleeve whichwould thereby alfect the inside diameter of the sleeve and createundesirable frictional forces against rotation of the head tube.

The structure herein is also marked by improved tilt cords and liftcords, as more fully illustrated in FIGS. 14 and 18. As explained inconnection with FIG. 12, the tilt mechanism has a drum 68 which is anextension of the worm 66 and which is externally accessible forattaching a pair of tilt cords and 72. The drum is dimensionallycoordinated to the dimension of the tilt cords so as to provide aspecific number of turns to be accommodated on the face of the drumwhich allows full rotational tilt of the head tube. With therelationship so established, the cords are always caused to lie insequence on the drum face and without tangling. The cord guide elementsare so positioned that each cord, as it wraps around the surface of thedrum, cannot rise above its neighbor, yet has sufiicient freedom to moveas to not cause friction to develop in the operation of the tilter.

FIG. 14A, which is a vertical sectional view through the drum 68 and theguide slot for the tilt cords 70 and 72, will illustrate the foregoingoperation. The drum 68 has an axial cavity 69 and a pair of radialapertures, one near the outer end of the drum which is shown in FIG. 14at 71, and a similar radial aperture near the base of the drum (notshown). The tilt cords 70 and 72 are threaded through said apertures anda knot 73 is formed at the mid-point of the lift cords. The knot assuresthat there will be no slippage of the tilt cords at either extremity oftheir movement.

As shown in FIG. 14A, 21 pair of tilt cord guides and 77 underlie thedrum 68. These guides are so configured that an entrance slot 79 isconstricted beyond the diameter of the drum 68 and then sloped upwardlyas the guides approach the drum. This serves to hold the tilt cords 70and 72 in a stable position and project them toward the face of the drumas they are manipulated.

Since it is contemplated, in its presently preferred form, that theinvention be embodied principally in a venetian blind having slats notsubstantially more than 1" in width, and since these slats willordinarily be manipulated, in tilting, raising and lowering by operatingcords that are in all respects quite slender, steps must be taken toprevent both the tilt cords and the lift cords from becoming tangled, ortwisted. To this end, both sets of cords are maintained free of tangles,or twist, by resort to guide beads 190 and 192, as pertaining to thetilt cords and the lift cords, respectively.

The tilt cord head 190 has an internal bore 194 which opens through thebottom end of the bead. A pair of cord passages 196 and 198 are providedin the opposite end of the bead for the respective tilt cords 70 and 72.The tilt cord 70 has a knot 200 (FIG. 18) formed in the end thereofagainst which the bead 190 is adapted to rest. The tilt cord 72 passesthrough the cord passage 198 and through the bore 194 of the bead 190 toa length sufficiently great to permit a complete blind tilting movement.This latter cord also terminates with a bead 202 having a bore 204opening through the bottom end of the bead. The cord 72 passes through acord passage 206 in the top of the bead 202 to which it is attached by aknot 208. Therefore, by grasping the beads 190 and 20.2 and sliding thehead 1% along the cord 72 in a direction toward or away from the bead202, the blind can be tilted as may be desired without any danger of thetwo cords becoming inter-twined with each other or angled, as normallydoes happen on all present day venetian blinds utilizing separate tiltermechanism operated separately by pendant cord ends.

Much the same consideration is applied to the lift cords 38 and 38a,with, however, notable exceptions. The lift cords 38 and 38a passthrough a single cord passage 210 in the upper end of the bead 192 andthrough the bore 212 of the bead which opens through its bottom end. Thecords 38 and 38a, in effect, are formed of a single strand terminatingat its free end in a loop 214. This loop may be formed at any desirableheight and is adapted to be connected with a second loop 216 byinter-engaging the two loops as shown in FIG. 17. The ends of the secondloop 216 pass through a cord passage 218 in the top of a bead 220 whichhas an internal bore 222 opening through the bottom end of the bead. Theends of the loop 216 are knotted together, as shown at 224, to retainthe bead 220 in position at the end of the second loop such as tocompletely conceal the knot 224. After the loops 214 and 216 have beeninter-engaged, as shown in FIG. 17, the blind is levelled by adjustingthe loop 214 in either direction, as indicated by the arrow 226; theloops 214 and 216 are then drawn tightly together and the bead 19-2 ispulled down tightly over the resulting knot, such that the bead 192completely conceals the knot and prevents untying or slippage thereof,as shown in FIG. 16.

There is little or no danger that the loops 214 and 216 will slip underthese conditions and the blind will consequently remain level. Moreover,the arrangement has the great advantage of ease of manipulation inachieving the initial blind leveling adjustment. Yet another advantageof the arrangement is that the blind will usually be raised and loweredby grasping the bottom loop cords which may consequently become soiledbut which can be very quickly replaced simply by replacing the bottomloop.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that the venetian blind structureillustrated and described herein has the outstanding virtue of rapid andeasy assembly and disassembly. Its various components can be separatedfrom the structure as a whole with the greatest of ease for inspectionor replacement.

While the novel features of the invention have been illustrated anddescribed in connection with a specific embodiment of the invention, itis believed that this embodiment will enable others skilled in the artto apply the principles of the invention in forms departing from theexemplary embodiment herein, and such departures are contemplated by theclaim.

I claim:

1. A venetian blind comprising a tubular head assembly, means adaptedfor rotatably mounting said tubular head assembly, means for impartingrotational movement to said head assembly, said last named meanscomprising a tilt gear mechanism including an operating worm having astem extending therefrom, operating means connected to said stem, apassage at the axis of said tilt gear adapted to receive a pintleextending from one end of said head assembly, a bracket having an innerweb adapted to receive and hold said tilt gear mechanism, a pintlereceiving passage in said web of said bracket, a separable pintleextending from one end of said head assembly and into said pintlereceiving passage, said pintle having a semi-circular collar adapted toenter said pintle receiving passage and engage the inner face of saidweb, thereby holding said pintle against inadvertent separation fromsaid web.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,008,499 11/1911 Thompson 1603442,091,033 8/1937 Dodge 160168 2,158,826 5/1939 Lorentzen 160-1682,234,804 3/1941 Murray 160--172X 2,544,184 3/1951 Rosenbaum 160-1772,555,709 6/1951 Sherwood 160168 2,689,607 9/1954 Loucony 160 -1772,737,235 3/1956 Hediger 160170 PETER M. CAUN, Primary Examiner US. Cl.X.R. 160176

